Tudela at the same time said the CNMI should come up with a concrete plan to get more affluent tourists.
“Segmentation of those markets and targeting selected segments with specific tourism programs that work will take time,” he said.
The mayor just arrived from a trip to China and Japan where he attended the celebration of the Meritorious Recognition Award given to Choken Ginoza, Micronesian Repatriation Association of Okinawa president, in Nishi Naha City, Okinawa.
Tudela also attended the 2nd Global Outsourcing Summit 2008 and the 4th International Cooperation Summit for CEOs and Provincial Governors and Mayors and the Special Investment Project in China.
During the five-day summit, Tudela said, he was privileged to promote Saipan as a popular resort destination to tourists from Japan, Korea and China “because of our distinct crystal clear and clean beaches.”
“I mentioned the importance of our economic history,” he said. “However, I also pointed out, the gradual effects of the Asian financial recession since 1997.”
Tudela said because of the impact of the Asian recession, economic opportunities in the Pacific differ greatly from one part of the region to another.
In a meeting with business leaders, the mayor said he discussed how Saipan and the rest of CNMI must take a positive step in the right direction to improve its tourism industry.
“Saipan’s many luxurious beachfront hotels offer many recreational opportunities, water sports, diving and unforgettable sunsets,” he said.
Saipan and the rest of the CNMI, he added, are making every effort to refurbish its reputation as a tourist destination and is undergoing a program of beautification now that the island’s textile industry has disappeared.
CNMI leaders, he said, recognize the urgency in setting up infrastructure improvement and other changes in place so it can enhance the island’s appeal as a tourist destination in the Pacific.
Tudela said his trip with staff member Jose DLC. Tenorio was in the “best interest” of Saipan and the CNMI, because “we are seeing the influx of Chinese tourists from the non-stop twice weekly flights to Saipan from Shanghai, China.”
